If you asked us both separately during the dead of a long, Christmasless season which single ornament in our vast collection most embodies the entire essence of the holiday, this is the one we’d pick:

It’s another one of the magnum opuses (opi?) that Boomer made during the early/mid-’70s, and is pretty much as awesome as you could ever ask a Christmas tree ornament to be. And while there are lots of Bucilla kit felt-and-sequin ornaments in our collection of family heirlooms, this is probably the one that’s in the best shape. The others might have been beaten up by a succession of overenthusiastic tree-decorating seasons, but even when we were too young to know any better, somehow this Santa just demanded special respect.